


Twilight- Invader Zim

by orphan_account



Category: Invader Zim, Twilight
Genre: F/M, Joke Fic, M/M, POV First Person, Parody Fic, invader zim oc, twilight fanfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-06-27 23:09:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19799665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When Dib goes to a new school with his older sister, Gaz watching him, he finds a mysterious new student who's not as he seems. What could possibly happen next?disclaimer- I'm not a fan of zadr whatsoever, I'm only doing this for shits and gigglesedit- just a small break





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> fun fact- I don't even ship zadr, like at all, but someone on discord gave me the idea to do this, so do this I shall

My dad was driving me to the airport before it all went down. The sky above us right now was perfect, low 70's, not a cloud in the sky. I was wearing my blue ghost shirt and my cool black jacket. I had extra hair gel in today. In my hands was my suitcase and a bunch of files, filled with paranormal oddities. 

Where I was headed was Forks in Washington State. Almost never sunny, instead it's replaced with sad, boring rain. Apparently, my mom had me here, and we lived here until I was two years old, up until she died. Ever since, I've only been here for the summers with my dad until I turned 16. After that, it was staycations with my sister while dad was off doing his own work wherever he was needed. 

And it was now to Forks that I was going to live. A place full of mystery and adventure, or at least that's what I kept trying to tell myself. I loved my old place just fine to be honest. But no, I thought there would be cool stuff at Forks, being able to live with my sister and all. 

"Son," my dad said to me before I boarded. "Are you sure you want to do this?" 

"Yeah," I said. "I really want to go." 

My dad shrugged, his lab coat flowing as he turned away from me. "Oh well. I always knew you were a bit insane. Oh, tell your sister I said hello!" 

"Yeah, sure, ok," I sighed. Then I got on the plane, and my whole world faded from me. 

It would be quite a long flight from there to Seattle, where I then had to get into the car with Gaz, starting a just as long drive into Forks. The flying bit was fine, it was the car bit that gave off that awkward feeling. 

There's nothing wrong with Gaz, she's cool I guess. Maybe hot-headed at times, but as long as you keep your distance, you can get on her good side, nice and easy. Dad told her to help me with driving (I hardly had time to learn), and he got me set up for high school in Forks, so that would be cool. 

Nevertheless, Gaz and I weren't really ones to talk with each other, but despite all that, it was still sure to be an awkward ride down. I knew she wasn't really one to question me, but I was sorta worried she may wonder why I would come down to Forks, a place I had said I didn't like. Then again, that's why Gaz decided to live there. 

Landing in Seattle, it was raining. In other news, grass is green. See you never, Sun. 

Gaz was waiting in her cruiser for me, a large scowl on her face. Ah yes, I guess I should mention Gaz somehow is a police officer for Forks. I guess that doesn't really matter though, I could care less to be honest. And between you and me, Gaz was really only in it for the donuts. 

She didn't even to bother to hug me, or even give a hello as I came into the lot. Just a, "Get in." 

"Nice to see you too Gaz," I mumbled, climbing into her car. Gaz took no time in stuffing my two suitcases and briefcase full of my paranormal files into the trunk of the cruiser. I was sorta worried that everything would get squished, but before I could say anything, Gaz got herself in, and then we were off. 

"Dad showed me this car for you," Gaz said as we drove out of the airport. 

"Ooo! What kind?" I asked. 

"A truck actually, a Chevy one," she explained. "It's pretty old too, from the 50's or something. It came pretty cheap though." 

"Define cheap." 

"Dad already had me get it for you. A 'Welcome to Forks' gift pretty much." Gaz opened one eye as she looked at me, a murderous smile on her face. Makes you wonder how she got to be a cop in the first place. 

"I could've bought my own one, but ok then," I mumbled, turning away from my horrifying sister. 

"Dad said he wanted you to be happy here, so don't whine. You're welcome by the way," Gaz growled deep in her throat. 

Staring out the window of the car, everything looked a little too peaceful. The plants looked too green, the trees, too healthy, the road, too nice looking. Instantly, my mind started swarming with theories. Was this whole place a simulation? An alien threat? Or something more sinister... 

A few minutes later, and we were at Gaz's. She now lived in what used to be our mom and dad's old home back when they were married, before they had Gaz. In the driveway was my new truck. I actually liked it. No, loved it! I thought about all the cool things and spy work I could do there! No one would suspect a paranormal investigator to be driving a truck from the 50's! 

"I actually love it!" I giggled. 

"Dad shall be pleased," Gaz sighed, rolling her eyes. 

It didn't take long for me to get my stuff into my room. It looked the same as it did when I was a baby, the navy blue walls, a rocking chair, the only differences now were a bed and a desk where my new laptop and paranormal files would be. 

Sadly, there was only one bathroom in this house, which meant I would have to share with Gaz. Not fun, as one would expect. 

At least Gaz let me unpack my stuff in peace. I thought about doing that cliche emo thing, where one stares out the window while it's raining and let tears fall from their face, but I decided against it. I'm no emo, I'm a paranormal investigator! 

I was kinda worried about how people would see me at this new high school. It's that old thing of course, where you had so many friends at your old school but now you have none at your new school and yada yada. 

I tried to take my mind off it and take all my toiletries to the bathroom. Maybe I could even shower, I hadn't done so for a few days. 

I looked at myself in the bathroom mirror, staring at my tannish skin through my glasses. People were though with the whole "picking on kid with glasses" thing, right? My hair was abnormally crunchy now, it was probably the extra hair gel. 

Maybe I wouldn't fit in at school at all. No one at my old school liked me, who's to say they'll like me at Forks High? Or, maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised. 

Even with the bad, rainy weather, I got decent sleep that night. Yeah, who knew? 

Breakfast was alone that morning. Gaz took her food to the living room so she could play her old GameSlave 3. So it was just me in the dining room, shoveling the scrambled eggs into my mouth. It took me a few seconds afterward to realize that Gaz had really done nothing to the house. I thought this place would've had pizza flavored walls and GameSlaves everywhere by the time she moved in when she was 16, I being 13. Instead, it looked just the same as ever. It was kinda odd to be completely honest. 

After breakfast, it was time to get to school. I hadn't gotten my clothes on yet, I was still in my pajamas, so clothes was first. I put on the same outfit I always wore, my ghost shirt, black jeans, black boots, and my black investigators's jacket. I put some more hair gel in to get my hair to that wonderful style, and headed out to get to school. 

It was still raining as I locked Gaz in, which I didn't mind all that much. It just made it slightly harder to get to school, especially in my new truck. 

The truck was pretty cool, had that odd 50's smell to it. The radio even worked, which was pretty cool! I started it up and hit the road. 

The school was pretty easy to find, just off the highway. It looked kinda like my old middle school back home, with its large brick exterior. 

I decided to park in the empty parking lot. Now, either I was too early, everyone was taken by vampire aliens, or this wasn't the student parking lot. Nonetheless, I decided to get some directions rather than acting like an idiot on my first day. Luckily, the front office was right across the street. 

The building as I stepped in was quite comfortable. The front office, however, was a little too warm to my liking, especially with all the black clothing I was wearing. The lady at the front office looked nice enough. She had short brown hair and glasses, which caught my attention for some reason. 

She looked up and asked, "Could I help you?" 

"I'm Dib Membrane, the new kid," I said. 

The lady threw a bunch of files out of her drawer until she found mine. Handing it to me, she said, "Here's your schedule and a map of the school. Have a nice day!" 

I walked out of the office with a slight smile on my face. Heading back to the truck, I saw other students in their own cars passing by. Most of them looked somewhat new, but others looked old like mine. It felt nice, to be honest. 

I followed the other cars into a different parking lot nearby, then I parked the second I had the chance. Stepping out, I ran up to the other kids filing into the building. I followed suit and went with them, hoping that I studied the map well enough to remember where my classes were.

The first classroom I went to was kinda small. I squeezed by everyone hanging up their coats so I could get to my desk. The teacher there was an old, tall lady whose nameplate read "Ms. Bitters". She growled at me at first glance, which made me a little uneasy.

The rest of the morning was about as boring as one may expect, as did lunch. Or at least, I thought lunch would be boring as ever. 

I was sitting at a lone lunch table when I saw a group of people at a different table. There was something off about all of them. There seemed to be 5 of them, all wearing pink jackets. Three of them also had green-ish skin! Now that was odd. 

Of the three boys, one had black hair, and was sorta yelling-prone. The second one was shorter with brown hair in the same style as the other guy, and looked more skittish. The last guy was as short as the second guy, but more yell-y like the first guy, and had light brown hair. 

The girls' skin were anything but green. One girl had light brown skin and dark brown, curly hair. The other girl had fair skin and red hair, pulled back with a black headband. 

I stared at them for a bit until the redhead girl stood up and tossed her food away. 

"Hey Zita," I asked the girl at the table next to me. "Who are _they?_ " 

Zita just shrugged and said, "The one with the black hair is Zim, the short one with brown hair is Skoodge, and the really short one that's yelling is Bob. The girl that left is Ida, and the other girl is Tenn. They all live with two guys, Mr. Red and Mr. Purple."

I stared one of the boys and thought about their names. All very weird, and... alien like. That's not to say I don't have a weird, alien like name either, but still... 

"They're certainly interesting. They're adopted I take it?" I asked Zita. 

Zita nodded. "Yeah, all of them are." 

"Have they always been here?" 

"No, they say they come from some place far from here, but they never specified. Some people have said maybe they're from Los Angeles, and the green skin is from an odd sunburn the three of them got, or maybe a skin condition, but no one really knows." 

I sighed. At least I wasn't the only newcomer here. 

"Which is the one with the black hair again?" 

"That would be Zim. He hates everyone, so don't waste your time talking to him." 

That just made me confused. "But then why is he talking to the others at his table?" 

Zita looked at me like I just grew another nose. "Because they're his family, duh!" 

I rolled my eyes and turned to look at Zim once more. When he finally caught me looking at him, he scowled and cracked his knuckles. I turned away. 

After lunch, Zita accompanied me to my next class, Biology. When we entered, I saw Zim in the back fiddling with some odd-looking scanning device. Upon seeing me, he instantly put it away. He stared at me with the most intense look on his face, which made me turn away in fear. 

As Zita took her seat, I found the only open seat in the class was the one by Zim. So of course, I took my seat there. 

As I sat down, Zim's expression turned from anger and rage to mild annoyance. Odd. I tried hard not to look at him as we did our work. But every so often, I would snatch a glance at Zim, seeing how he always did his work in a mild rage. He obviously had some anger issues to work out. No wonder he yelled so much, according to Zita at least.

The class seemed to go on forever until it was finally over. Zim quickly hopped out of his seat and dashed toward the door. I decided to follow him. Unfortunately, I followed him to his next class, and not mine. Luckily, I managed to get to my final class just as the tardy bell rang. 

For gym, I got a uniform but didn't have to dress in it for the day. Nonetheless, I took off my jacket and set it by the bleachers. Didn't want it to get ruined. 

The game for today- volleyball. Not my personal favorite. I didn't do all that well, but I kinda expected that outta me anyway. Then at last, the final bell. Freedom! 

Walking out of the building, I saw Zim walking into the front office. I decided to check it out and peek through the glass. 

I couldn't make out a lot of what he was saying, but it looked like he was mad about something. When he was done, he slammed his fists down on the secretary's desk and stormed out. 

Zim glanced at me as I slowly followed him out of the building. The second he saw my face, he snatched my arms and gave me a scary look. His scary looks weren't usually that of actually scary, but somehow, this one was. It seemed threatening almost. After what felt like forever, he let go and stormed off. 

When I got to the truck, I sat down in my seat and cried. I was now kinda scared of Zim. The feeling may not last though, it was only one time he scared me after all. After my session, I turned on the truck and drove off, coughing the whole way.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day was... interesting to say the least.

I mean, it didn't rain, and school seemed easier for me now, so that was a plus. Zita and a few of her friends actually decided to sit with me at lunch today, so now I had some friends. But at the same time, I got no sleep last night because of all the noisy wind, so school completely drained me of what little energy was still inside me. And gym was even worse. I accidentally knocked a kid out. That was definitely fun. 

But the worst part was, I didn't see Zim all day. But when I saw his table at lunch, all his siblings or whatever were still there. Zim was up to something, I could tell. But what? I wanted to ask him so bad, but I feared getting strangled by him. And as the day passed, I got more and more nervous, but also more and more suspicious. 

_Maybe he's just sick._ the rational part of my brain said. 

_Or maybe he's up to something sinister that could destroy the whole school! Maybe even the world!_ the other part of my brain said. 

I anticipated Zim to show up at some point in lunch and start ranting to his siblings or something, but he never did. And when I got to Biology, he wasn't there either. Score! Now I had the table to myself! 

As I sat down, one of Zita's friends, Drew, started talking to me about a trip he went on until the bell rang and class started. Now throughout Biology, I kept getting a feeling I was now the reason Zim wasn't there. Yeah, sounds weird and maybe even self-centered a bit, but I couldn't shake the feeling no matter how hard I tried. 

Once the school day was finally over, I ran back to the truck and dug through the bag in the passenger seat, making sure everything was there. See, Gaz hardly cooked for herself, she couldn't really make much at all besides eggs and toast. And since there was hardly any food in the house at all, (Gaz mostly ordered herself take out), it was up to me to go to the local convenience store and buy some stuff for the house. 

I turned on the truck, then pulled out of my spot. I waited for a bit behind a line of other cars that were waiting to leave, when I saw Zim's other siblings getting into their car as well, their pink puffy jackets swaying in the wind. They were in a cool looking Volvo. Red and Purple must be rich of some sort if they're able to afford a Volvo like the one I was looking at. 

They all looked at me as I pulled out of the parking lot, but I tried not to look back until I left school grounds. FREEDOM! 

The convenience store wasn't too far from the school, which meant it wasn't too far from home either. It felt nice being inside it, nostalgic almost. Dunno why though. 

When I got home, I unloaded all the groceries onto the kitchen counter, then put them wherever they'd fit. Gaz prolly wouldn't mind. 

I wasn't all that hungry, despite half the stuff I got was for dinner. So I took my school stuff up to my room and checked the emails on my computer. Nothing. Figures. Dad doesn't really care so much he doesn't even bother to write to me. Not even asking how my flight went? Despite this, I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and decided to email him about my trip over. 

_"Hey dad," I started, "My flight went well. I'm here with Gaz now. School's been going good. Made some friends surprisingly. Write back soon? -Dib"_

When I was done, I decided to check on some paranormal forums I'd been on for a while. By the time I'd gotten into a really interesting thread, Gaz came home. I could hear her hanging her stuff on the wall and getting to the couch to play on her GameSlave. 

She grunted at me as I came down the stairs. "Hello to you too," I said. 

"What's for dinner?" she asked. 

I pulled a packet out of the fridge and read the label. "Meat and cheese ravioli." I started a pot of water on the stove and cooked the ravioli for a few minutes. When it was done, I put some in a bowl for me and some in a bowl for Gaz. I set her bowl on the coffee table and took mine to the kitchen to eat in silence. 

"Hey Gaz," I said after a few minutes. "Do you know anyone by the name of Red and Purple who live here?" 

Gaz paused her game and turned around to look at me. "Yeah, they're pretty cool. Their kids are cool too, kinda weird though." 

"Weird? Weird how?" I asked. 

Gaz shrugged and turned back to her game. "I dunno. Some of them can be really shouty. Other than that, they're all pretty cool. Don't cause that much trouble luckily. Makes my job easier." 

I nibbled on my last ravioli. "I mean, they all seem pretty ok. Zim though, he seems the most off out of all of them. Even the other two with green skin." 

When Gaz was done, we put our bowls in the sink and I washed em. Luckily, it was just the two bowls and forks to wash, nothing else. After that, Gaz went back to the couch for her GameSlave and I went upstairs to work on my homework. I fell asleep pretty quickly afterwards. 

The rest of the week seemed to be the same thing. Same classes, same friends at lunch, same fact that Zim hadn't shown up to school since my first day. After a few days, I felt more comfortable knowing Zim prolly wouldn't be at school anymore. Less for me to worry about. 

But at the same time, I couldn't shake the feeling that something much more sinister was going on. Why would Zim be worried about me showing up, get mad at me for no reason, then not show up for days afterward? Or maybe I was just paranoid. 

In other news, my first weekend in Forks went pretty well. Nothing out of the ordinary happened, so that was good. I was even able to sleep pretty well. 

The next Monday, I stepped out of my truck and was greeted by Drew. We were walking into school together when I noticed soft white flakes tumbling down.

"Oh, it's snowing!" Drew said. 

I groaned a little. I didn't hate snow, it was just a little tedious for me sometimes. You couldn't do as much in snow. 

"Oh come one Dib," Drew said, nudging my elbow. "Snow's pretty cool. Sure you can't do all that much, but it is cool to look at, right?" 

I shrugged. Suddenly, a huge snowball hit Drew in the back of the head. I jumped back and instantly ran away. That sort of stuff just triggered my fight or flight or some reason. 

In class, everyone was talking about the snowfall, apparently the first one of the year. I listened but never really talked about it. I had nothing to say.

Walking outside with Zita to get to lunch, I put my notebooks in front of my face, a meager attempt to not get hit with snowballs. Zita giggled, and I tried to laugh with her. Luckily, she never threw one at me. 

Drew met us at the door to the cafeteria, snow caking his hair. As we got in line to buy our food, I felt my eyes drifting toward the table in the corner. There were people there. 

"Dib! You gotta order!" Zita's voice brought me back to Earth. My eyes felt hot, my throat tightened up.

"Dib? You good?" Drew asked. 

I coughed and ordered a grilled cheese and nothing else. 

"Not very hungry today?" Zita asked me. I just shook my head. I then waited for Zita and Drew to order, and we went to a table and sat down.

I took slow bites of my grilled cheese, occasionally looking up at the table where Zim and the others sat. Zim and Bob were arguing about something, and Skoodge, Tenn, and Ida just sat and watched. Tenn and Ida looked close to laughter actually. 

However, the more I stared at Zim, the more I noticed something more off with him. His skin looked more olive colored now, and a pink glow could be seen in his eyes. Was it pink eye? No, he wouldn't be at school if he had pink eye. 

"Dib? Are you still hungry or can I have the last half of your grilled cheese?" Drew asked. 

At that moment, Zim's eyes met mine. I tried hard to look away from him. 

"Uh, Zim's staring at you," Zita said, sounding slightly disgusted. Unsure why though. 

"Is he angry?" I half-whispered.

"No," Zita responded. "Why?" 

"He might hate me." 

"They're a very isolated group, so they don't tend to be around others enough to develop feelings toward em. He's still staring at you though." 

"Please stop talking." 

"Alright, alright." Zita turned away and went back to her soup. 

As Drew and I walked out of lunch, it started raining, washing away any and all signs of snow. It made me slightly relieved. At least I wouldn't have to worry about snowballs hurling toward me. 

I was also relieved to see my table in Biology empty. I almost skipped over and sat down. The teacher came around and gave us microscopes and slides, but class still didn't start for a bit. So imagine my surprise when I heard the chair next to me squeak back and forth. I looked up, and there he was. 

"Hi," he snapped. 

"Hello?" I said back. 

"I'm Zim. And you're the Dib-Human, correct?" 

"Dib-Human? Uh, sure, I guess." 

Before we could talk anymore, class started. We were told what to do, and then began. 

"You go first?" I suggested. Zim gladly took the opportunity and snatched the microscope away, staring at one of the slides. After a few minutes, he leaned his head back and cried out, "Ugh, what is this odd substance?!" 

I grabbed the microscope and stared at the creature for a few minutes. Finally, I lifted my head up and smiled at Zim. "It's prophase. Want me to look at the second one?" 

Zim smacked his hands on the table in a quick fury. "Yes, yes, just tell Zim what these odd creatures are!" 

I switched out the slides and stared at them. When I figured out what they were, I'd tell Zim and pass him the microscope for him to look at. He always seemed so intrigued by the slides, and identifying them by the names that they had. 

Staring at Zim, I noticed another change about him. His hair was a slightly different color. Last time it was jet black like mine, but now it was closer to a very dark brown. 

"Did you dye your hair?" I asked Zim. His head instantly shot up at me. 

"What? No! What makes you think that?" 

"Oh nothing." I went back to my work as Zim went back to the microscope. 

"Ugh, this snow. How I loathe it," Zim murmured to himself. 

"You hate snow too?" I asked, a little ashamed I was eavesdropping. 

"Yes, yes, yes!" Zim cried out. I was surprised no one was mad at him for yelling in the classroom. "I've always hated snow. And rain! How I hate rain!"

"I hate it too," I laughed. "Why do you live here then, if you don't like water falling from the sky?" 

Zim looked at me with a questioning stare. "If you feel the same way, I could ask you the same thing, Dib-Human!" 

I actually blushed a bit. I wasn't expecting that. 

"It's... hard to explain. See..." 

Zim waved a hand in front of my face, cutting me off. "Yeah, yeah, whatever." 

After a bit, class was over. Zim got up and dashed out of the room. Drew walked up and helped me with my stuff. 

"Oh man, all of those look the same! How'd you do?" 

"Pretty good I think," I said.

"Zim seemed friendly today," Drew noticed.

"Yeah," I said suspiciously. 

The rest of the day was kinda a blur. Eventually, the day came to a close and I was able to leave.

The air was cold as I headed out to my truck, but luckily the truck's inside warmed me right up. I turned on the truck and as I looked back, I saw Zim, leaning on the front of the Volvo, three cars away, giving me an almost murderous stare. I tried not to concentrate on him and slammed into reverse. Unfortunately, that meant I almost hit a car as I backed up. The good news was, I hit the brake just in time and drove out of the parking lot. But as I looked at Zim in the rearview mirror, I swear I saw him giving a maniacal laughter.


	3. Chapter 3

I felt an odd change as I woke up the next morning. Looking outside, I saw it had snowed last night. Great.

Gaz was already gone by the time I got downstairs, so that meant I had the house to myself for a bit until school. Great! 

I made a quick breakfast of orange juice and toast, then sat on the couch and ate. I was actually excited for school today, believe it or not. And it wasn't because of the classes, or the friends I'd made, it was because of Zim. And now I think I just went up a step of the stupidity ladder. I really shouldn't be happy to see him, after all, he is kinda crazy. And he was also very suspicious. No explanation for the green skin? Odd but slight change to his hair? Pink glow behind his eyes? He was also kinda freaky, the way he kept frowning at me. Even then, I found myself oddly attached to him. No, more like fixated on him. Gah! What am I saying?

Anyway, to take my mind off Zim, I instead thought about Zita and Drew as I drove to school, and how they've been really nice to me throughout my time at school. Definitely a step or two up from my old school.

It wasn't hard to bypass the black ice as I drove, which was a pretty good sign this truck was made for me. 

As I got out to enter the school, I saw Zim standing by his Volvo, talking to Tenn. Suddenly, a loud sound almost pierced my ears. Looking up, I saw a deep blue van spiraling towards me and the back of the truck as it skidded on the ice, frantically trying to stop. 

Right before the van collided with the back of the truck, I felt someone shove me to the side. I landed on the ground, the wind knocked out of my lungs. I never got to see who pushed me before I was shoved again, now to a different direction as the van next its course on me for whatever reason. Now I heard a low voice that was way too familiar to be true. Two gloved hands shot out and let the van cease to a halt a foot from my head. The hands also made a dent in the hood somehow.

The hands then grabbed my legs and dragged me away just as the windows shattered, and glass spilled everywhere. Especially where my legs should've been. 

Before I could get what was going on, the screaming of my name began. One voice stood out, one I heard all too well. 

"Stupid Dib. You're lucky I was there to save you, pitiful human." 

I tried to move, but something metal-like was holding my body tight. "I'm fine thanks for asking," I muttered as I struggled to break free. 

"Oh yeah, your big head might also be broken from falling so fast," Zim added. 

That's when I felt the chronic head pain emitting from above my ears. "OW! What's holding me so close? You're not using your arms, Zim." 

"Too bad you have nothing to instantly heal your giant head with, stupid Dib." Zim clearly wouldn't be answering any of my questions. And why was he calling my head big? Nonetheless, I decided to ask something else. 

"How'd you save me so fast?" 

"Hmm? Oh, that. I was right by you the whole time, Dib-Human. You just couldn't notice." 

I managed to sit up now, turning my head to look at Zim's purple eyes. My headache made it hard to think. What was I saying again? 

Now people started running toward us, yelling for Jen to get out of the van, and asking if I was ok. I tried to get up, but whatever Zim had holding me down kept its grip. Then it dawned on me. 

"Wait, you weren't by me at all. I saw you talking to Tenn earlier." 

"What? Eh? No I wasn't." 

"Yes you were. I saw you." 

"No I wasn't." Zim's face looked more serious now. "I was right by you and kept you safe from harm. You're lucky I was there at all you moron." 

I gritted my teeth. I could hear ambulances now. "You have to explain everything to me though." 

Zim looked away, still very mad. But I felt like I could hear a very soft, "Alright" from his lips. Perfect. 

It took at least 10 people to push the van away from us to bring in the stretchers. Zim said he didn't need one, and I tried to say just as much. But Zim said I probably "Broke my big head and I may need a hundred stitches". Traitor. The neck brace was then put on me and I got sent to the back of the ambulance, with Zim hopping in the front. Even better? My sister came to see me before they closed the doors. 

"Gaz?" I called. 

"Dib!" Gaz called back. She didn't look worried for me at all. Oh my, how concerned she was. 

As she talked to one of the EMTs, I replayed in my head what had happened. When he'd lifted me away, I had seen the deep dent in the hood, — a very distinct dent that fit Zim's composure... like he was strong enough to have made a dent in the van with his own two hands. 

And then his family looking out from the Volvo, with faces that ranged from disapproval to fury but held no concern for Zim's safety. 

Naturally, the ambulance got a police escort to the county hospital. What made it worse was that Zim was just freely walking around. I groaned.

I was almost instantly sent to the ER. No one bothered for the privacy curtain, so I took off the neck brace, I didn't want to wear the stupid thing at all.

There was a large crowd of hospital staff rushing past me as I saw Jen, the person in the van, being carried to the bed next to me. She had a bunch of bandages wrapped around her head, she looked awful. 

"Dib, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, I just hit the ice the wrong way, and-" 

"Nah, it's alright," I reassured. "You look horrible, are you ok?" As we spoke, the nurse started unwrapping Jen's bandages, revealing a bunch of scars and cuts across her face. 

Jen ignored my question. "How'd you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you weren't." 

"Uh... Zim pulled me out of the way," I responded. 

"Zim? Wow, I never knew he was so fast. Is he well?" 

"Yeah. He's here somewhere, he wanted to make sure I'm ok, for some reason." 

"Well that means he cares then. Or loves you." 

I felt my face twist in disgust. "Love me? No way. The way he looks at me, I don't think so! And even if he did, I don't love him!" 

Jen shrugged and turned to look at the ceiling. I did the same, and we didn't talk for a while. All the better to try and comprehend everything the third time over. 

I knew I wasn't crazy, despite what Dad may say. But there was no way to explain what had happened. 

I was then taken for head x-rays. Like I thought, no concussions. I asked if I could leave, but the nurse said I had to talk to a doctor first before any more decisions could be made. So I was trapped waiting, Jen's continuous "I'm sorry"s plaguing my brain. No matter how many times I tried to convince her I was ok, she wouldn't hear it. Finally, I closed my eyes and ignored her.

When I opened my eyes again, I almost screamed when I saw Zim hovering over my bed. He scowled as he saw me.

"Oh. I thought you died," he said. 

"Highly unlikely," I muttered, glaring at him. 

"I really do apologize Zim-" Jen started. Zim waved a hand in front of Jen's face. 

"Eh, don't be, Jen-Human. You didn't hurt Zim, just Dib." 

Jen looked at me with a sorry expression. I rolled my eyes and gave a sympathetic smile. 

"So what happened?" Zim asked me. 

"No concussion luckily, but I can't leave just yet," I replied. Zim groaned. What was up with him? 

"How come you aren't on a hospital bed?" 

"I heal quickly. And I know a guy." was all Zim said. 

A doctor came around, and my whole body gave off a hot flash. He was very tall, with fiery red hair and deep red eyes. Those couldn't be natural. If my reasoning was correct, this might have been one of Zim's dads, Red. And my suspicion could only be confirmed when Zim said, "Hey dad. This is the Dib-Human." 

I felt my legs go numb.

"So Mr. Membrane, you feeling well?" Dr. Red asked me in a slightly-higher-pitched-than-I-thought voice. 

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine," I replied. 

Red went to the lightboard on the wall and showed my x-rays. 

"Your head looks pretty good. Does it hurt at all? Zim said you hit it pretty hard on the ground." 

"Nah, it feels alright."

The doctor ran his fingers across the top of my head. I winced in pain. 

"Did that hurt?" he asked. 

"Nah," I shuddered. 

Red pulled his hand away. "Well, your sister's in the waiting room, so you can head off with her when you wish." 

"Can't I go to school now?" I half-whined. 

"You should probably take it easier today, we can't have you getting hurt again, now can we?" 

"Does Zim get to go back?" 

"Yes." 

"Why? Can't I tell everyone I'm ok instead of him?" 

"Actually, half the school is in the waiting area as well." 

I facepalmed and groaned at the same time. I instantly yelled when my hand connected with my head. 

"Yeah, ya might wanna take some Advil for that. It's surprising you were so lucky to survive," Red winced, signing off on my chart.

"It's lucky Zim was standing right next to me," I said. 

"Yeah, definitely," Red agreed. The plot thickens. Dr. Red was in on it too.

As soon as Red's back was turned, I tugged on Zim's jacket. "Can I talk to you for a second?" 

Zim stepped back and scowled. "I think your horrible sister's waiting for you." 

I glanced at Dr. Red and Jen. 

"I want to talk to you alone," I hissed.

Zim glared and dashed down the hall. I almost passed out trying to keep up with him. We eventually stopped just around the corner, and I tried to catch my breath.

"What do you want human?" Zim whisper-snapped. 

"Stop calling me that! You owe me an explanation still!" I snapped back. 

"Zim owes you nothing! I have no idea what you're blabbering on about! Your abnormally large head must still be damaged." 

"Nothing is wrong with my head! And it's not abnormally large!" 

Zim and I glared at each other. My temper rose. 

"What do you think you know?" Zim asked. 

Before I could think, my answer spewed out of me. "All I know is that you weren't anywhere near me! Jen didn't see you, either, so don't tell me I hit my head too hard. That van would've crushed us and it didn't, and it looked like your hands left dents in the van and another car, and you're not hurt at all and the van should have smashed my legs, but you were holding it up somehow..." I could hear how crazy it sounded, and I couldn't continue. 

Zim's face remained hard. But his eyes turned questioning. "You think Zim has the ability to lift a car off and away from you?" He asked this like he'd been practicing this line for years. I just nodded in response.

"Who will even believe you, stink-wad?" his voice sounded accusing in a sense. 

"What makes you think I'd tell anyone?" I made my voice match his tone. 

"Then why does this even matter?" 

"It matters to me, ok? I don't want to lie unless there's a good reason. And I'm not hearing a good reason right now." 

"Couldn't you just thank Zim and get over everything?" 

"Yes. Thank you." I glared at Zim, waiting. 

"You won't stop will you?" 

"Prolly not, no." 

"Then prepare for your utter disappointment, Dib-Human." 

We both scowled in silence. Then I decided to speak up, without getting distracted by his wonderful, determined, face... GAH! WHAT AM I SAYING?

"Why do you do this?" 

Zim paused for a moment, then leaned in close and whispered his answer in my ear. 

"I don't care enough to know." Then he turned around and walked away. Now I was very confused. 

I was so angry, I ran away, my speed fueled by my rage. Before I knew it, my legs took me to the waiting room. It was insane. It seemed everyone in the whole town was there. Gaz looked up from her game and came to me. I shot out two thumbs-up. 

"Nothing's wrong with me! I'm perfectly fine!" 

"That's what Dr. Red said?" Gaz asked me. I nodded. "Then let's go," she muttered. 

We drove home in silence. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts I forgot Gaz was even driving the cruiser. I forgot I was even in the cruiser at all. Then Gaz broke our silence. 

"Uh.. you may need to call Dad when we get home." 

My ears perked up. "You told Dad?" I almost yelled. 

"Well sorry for caring," Gaz muttered.

I slammed the door on the way out a little harder than intended. 

I called dad, told him I was fine, he said ok, then we hung up. That was usually how phone conversations went with him anyway. Call him, tell him something that happened, he gave a quick reaction to it, then hang up. After that, I decided to go to bed early. I grabbed a few Advil after a quick dinner of toast and milk, and it helped the headaches quite well. 

That was the first night I dreamed of Zim. I can't believe I just made that sentence.


	4. Chapter 4

My dream was filled with darkness, and what little light was coming from Zim. I couldn't see his face, just his backpack as he walked away from me. No matter how fast I ran, I could never catch him. No matter how loud I was yelling, no words or sound seemed to come out. Then, I woke up in the middle of the night. It continued like this pretty much every night afterwards, Zim just never being within reach. 

The month after the accident was nothing short of crazy. 

I found myself being the centre of attention the rest of the week. Jen would be following me around, trying to help me to make up for what she did. I tried to convince her it was ok and she might wanna move past it, but she wouldn't let up. I won't lie when I say I admired her compassion. Drew and Zita didn't admire her though, when she showed up at out lunch table ever since. 

Nobody seemed to care about Zim, even when I kept saying he was the one who saved me from the van. But Zita, Drew, and Jen kept saying they never saw him near me until the van was pulled away. I was confused as to why nobody had seen him so far away before he somehow managed to save my life. Then, it came to me, and a grimace spread across my face. No one else was as aware of Zim as I was. 

Zim was never surrounded by people asking how the whole accident happened. He was avoided like always. He and his siblings still sat at the same table, not eating, just talking with each other. Not even Zim bothered to glance my way again. 

When he'd sit next to me in our class, he'd sit as far away from me as he could, and not bother to look at me. Only now and then, when I'd hear him muttering to himself, would I know he was still up to something. He wasn't as oblivious as he wanted to be. 

He wished he hadn't saved my life, simple as that. 

I waned to at least say hi to him, and I tried to do so the day after the accident. But he never acknowledged me. After our encounter in the ER, I was so fueled by rage that he was definitely hiding something. But over time, I remembered that he helped save my life. And as much as I hate to admit it, I was instead overcome with gratitude for him and, not admired him, but was grateful for him. Yeah that's the right term. 

Zim was already there at our table when I got to Bio. I sat down, expecting him to turn to me, or something. He probably didn't even know I walked into the room. 

"Hey Zim," I said half-heartedly, showing I was trying to be nice to him. He slowly turned his head an eighth towards me, not meeting my gaze. He nodded then turned away afterwards. 

And that was the last time I tried talking or making any contact with him. Although he was there, every day, he never bothered to talk to me. Sometimes I'd sneak a look at him from a distance, but that was it. I noticed his purple eyes grew darker by the day, which is obviously very odd. In classes, we hardly gave a moment's notice to each other. And yet, the dreams of him continued. 

Drew seemed to be happy with the calmness between me and Zim. He didn't seem to be the biggest fan of my green savior, and he talked to me more often before Bio started, paying no attention to my lab partner at all. 

After the accident, the snow was completely gone, thank goodness. Drew was upset that he couldn't cause anymore snowball fights, but we were both happy the beach trip was still in the air now. Despite this, the heavy rain still continued over time. 

The first day of March, Drew called me to ask if he could ask Zita to the school dance. I happily let him, school dances were never my thing. The next day however, both Zita and Drew looked down. I was too nervous to ask either of them anything about the dance. Luckily, it was Zita who came up to me at lunch to talk about it. 

"So... Drew asked me to the dance," she said. 

"Oh? How'd that go?" 

"I just told him I'd think about it." 

"How come?" 

Well... I thought maybe you would be planning on asking me." 

How do I respond to this? I felt so guilty now. Nevertheless, I took a breath and decided to tell her. 

"Zita, you should go with Drew. You'll have a lot more fun with him than me. Besides, school dances aren't really my thing." 

"Oh?" That seemed to make Zita feel somewhat better. "What will you be doing instead?" 

"Um, you know, I'll be in Seattle that Saturday," I explained. It'd be good for me to get out of town anyway. "You should tell Drew your answer if you still wanna go with him." 

"Yeah, I should. Thanks Dib." 

In Bio, I tried to rid myself of the guilt from Zita and the dance. It all vanished once the teacher started talking. That was easy. 

The whole time, Zim looked at me with the oddest expression. I couldn't tell if it was curiosity or anger. When I turned to meet his gaze, he didn't even turn away. So there we were for most of class, having a staring contest. I'm surprised the teacher never called on us. 

When Zim did eventually turn his head away, I snapped mine back as well, burying it in a book. I couldn't believe he decided to look at me after all those weeks. It was... unnerving. I tried hard to act like he wasn't there the rest of the class period, but it was hard since he was sitting right next to me. I could feel his eyes all over me. When the bell finally rang, I turned away from Zim to pack my stuff, hoping he'd leave and not care to notice me as well. Unfortunately, his mouth decided to speak up.

"It'd be best if we were to never speak to each other again Dib," he whisper snapped. It took all my strength not to whip my head at him. 

"Save your words Zim, I know you're just full of regret for saving my life." 

"You know nothing Dib-Human." 

I snatched my books quickly from the table in a small rage and made a swift exit toward the door. I meant to puff up my jacket as I left, but I didn't see where I was going and I tripped on my way out, dropping all my books. For a second, I almost wanted to leave them there and keep walking. But I decided against it.

As I bent down to pick em up, I saw a small flash on the ground. When I looked up, Zim was there next to me with the stack already in his hands. I didn't even care to think of how he did it so fast. 

"Thanks," I muttered, snatching the pile away from him. Zim just nodded and pushed me out the door. I lifted my head up and walked toward gym without looking back. 

Speaking of gym, it was insane. We started Basketball, and it was tough, I was never good with the ball, and no one even decided to pass me the ball, which I guess is good. Today was particularly bad for me because of Zim filling my thoughts, no matter how hard I tried to not focus on him. 

As always, I was happy when the final bell of the day rang. I walked up to the truck, which only suffered a few dents since the accident. I almost screamed when I neared the driver's seat and saw a shadow there. Then I realized it was Jen and I felt a bit better.

"Hey Jen, what up?" I asked. She looked somewhat nervous. 

"Um... Dib, would you care to go to the dance with me?" her voice got squeakier by the last word. 

I winced, nervous to respond and hurt her feelings. Eventually I gained the courage and spoke. 

"I'm glad you asked me Jen, but I can't go. I'm going to be in Seattle that day, I'm sorry." 

"Oh. Ok, some other time then/" Jen looked really downfallen, but I didn't wanna have her feel bad. 

"Yeah, totally," I said. She hung her head down and walked back toward the school. 

Stepping into the truck and revving the engine, I saw Zim in the Volvo cut me off in line. Just great. As I waited, I saw Tenn, Skoodge, Bob, and Ida all slide in the Volvo with Zim. In the rearview mirror, I saw Zim's eyes trained on me. I was about to hit the gas pedal and hit the Volvo's bumper, when the line let up and the Volvo sped away in time. I growled the whole way home. 

Once I got home, I decided to make a hot dog for dinner. It would take a bit to boil, which would keep me busy. As I heated up the water, the phone started ringing. I almost had a heart attack when it started up, fearing it may be Gaz or dad. Instead, it was Zita, and she couldn't have been happier saying she accepted Drew's invitation to the dance. She really wanted me to go as well, but I told her of my Seattle trip and stated how upset I was I couldn't go. I wasn't upset, but I didn't want her to think I hated her or anyone else.

After I hung up the phone, I set my focus back on dinner. But the whole time I could only think about Zim talking to me in Bio. What did he mean by "It'd be better if we didn't talk to each other again"? 

I then realized what he meant. I was so curious about him and his family; he didn't want me to catch on. He wasn't interested in me, and thought I should do the same. Now I just got even more suspicious. What does he not want me to catch on to? 

It was plain and simple; he wanted me to leave him alone. But with how suspicious he and his whole family were, I couldn't bring myself to do it. There were so many things I needed to know, so many things I needed answers to. Like the eyes, the hair, the green skin! 

When Gaz came home, I handed her a hot dog on a bun; she took it and sat down on the couch, quickly opening her GameSlave. 

"Hey Gaz, just so you know, I was planning on going to Seattle a week from Saturday, that alright with you?" I asked. 

"Yeah, sure, as long as you know what you're doing there," she muttered, clearly focused on her game. Well I got that out of the way. 

The next morning as I pulled into the parking lot, I made an effort to park as far away from Zim and the Volvo as possible. The moment I finally found a decent spot, I parked, stepped out, and dropped the key into a puddle. When I bent down to get it, a black glove snatched it before I could. And when I looked up, who else was it but Zim. 

"Just how do you do that?" I asked, squinting my eyes so he could tell I was curious. 

"Pick up a key? Oh that's easy, I just-" Zim started. I waved my hands to cut him off. 

"No, no. I meant appear out of thin air like that." 

"I have no idea what you're talking about Dib-Human. It's not my fault it's hard for you to see, even with your glasses." Zim said that line a little too quickly. He was most definitely hiding something now. 

"I thought you were pretending I don't exist," I continued to press. Zim shrugged and grinned. 

"Oh Dib, I'm not exactly pretending." 

"Then what are you doing Zim?" 

He didn't even answer, so I just walked away like I never asked anything at all. Or at least, I attempted to. Zim stopped me and turned me to face him again. Now I was getting nervous. What was he going to do? 

"Before I forget, I heard through your sister and my dads you were heading to Seattle. I want to accompany you."

I was speechless. This felt very out of character for Zim; he was normally shouty, cold (emotionally and physically), and hated everyone except his family. Why did he want to go to Seattle with me all of a sudden? Then again, it would be a good opportunity to keep and eye on him and see if I could get anything else out of him. I nodded. He eyed me and growled. 

"Then it would be best if you stay away from me for the time being. See you in class Dib-Human." He turned and walked back the way we'd came.


	5. Chapter 5

English had already started by the time I'd walked in. Extremely embarrassed, I made my way to my seat and sat down, my face feeling pale.

When class ended, I noticed Zita wasn't in her seat, which made me increasingly nervous. But as I stepped out of the room, Zita and Drew were at the door, so I felt a bit better. Zita seemed much happier as we left for our next classes, talking about how there wouldn't be any rain for a while, so the beach trip is still up there. I tried to sound excited to make up for being so nasty yesterday, but it was still kinda upsetting. Even without the rain, it would still be pretty cold.

The rest of the morning I could hardly remember. My mind was too focused on Zim's words and how he looked at me the previous day, half the time I was convinced it was just a dream. But of course, that wasn't the case. 

I was half nervous to see Zim as we entered the cafeteria for lunch. It was like a game, "How will Zim act towards me today?" My friends wouldn't stop talking about the dance and their dates; I don't think they even cared I wasn't listening. 

Looking at the table, I was actually kinda disappointed. His other siblings were there, but not him. Was he not here at all? Had he gone early? 

"I wonder why Zim's sitting by himself today?" Drew asked, breaking my thoughts. Looking across from the table, there was Zim, sitting by himself, at the empty table next to his siblings. When he looked up and saw me, he scowled. Knowing Zim, I couldn't tell if he wanted me there with him or not. Then as though he could read my mind (maybe he could, I had no way of knowing), he motioned for me to join him. 

"I... think I better go see what Zim wants," I muttered, making my way to his table.

Zim stared at me the whole time I headed to his table. When I arrived, he gave another one of his creepy grins, but his eyes gave off a different energy somehow. He looked like he was going to kill me the second I turned my back. Once I got there, I stood behind the chair cross from him, my face giving off the idea that I wanted an explanation from him. 

"I didn't want to be lonely today, so I wanted to know if you would join me. Glad to see you obliged," he explained. I rolled my eyes and sat down across from him. We both sat in silence for a bit after, waiting for the other to say something, anything. Then finally, Zim broke the silence. 

"Do you think your friends may be mad at me for taking you, Dib-Human?" 

"Uh..." I was somewhat confused. I didn't think they would be, did they look upset? I turned my head to the table I wanted to sit at, they looked about as same as they always did. I turned back to Zim. "No, they don't look mad. I'm sure they're fine." 

"Good." Zim said this with a menacing tone. Now I was getting nervous. 

"What's all this about Zim?" I asked. He looked like he was thinking about it for a bit. 

"See, I wanted you to stay from me, Zim, at all costs. But seeing as that will most likely never happen since we're almost always together in class, Zim has decided to admit defeat." 

"As in... you're giving up trying to be away from me all the time?" 

"If you want to make it simple, then yes." 

"Does that mean..." my voice strained trying to say the next bit, "we can be friends? Only if you want of course." 

Zim looked at me like I'd just gone insane. Not that he wasn't too far off in that assumption, but still. 

"You think Zim would make a good friend?" he asked. I slowly nodded. "You are making a dumb mistake, but Zim still accepts nonetheless." 

I nervously chuckled, staring down at my lunch. I sent my hand up to my head and started fiddling around with my ear. I've always done it when I had nothing to do but still needed something to do. It could also mean I was thinking about something if you knew me long enough. 

"What are you doing Dib-Human?" I looked up to see a somewhat disgusted Zim. It was then I noticed that he had no ears at all. No idea how I or anyone else never noticed that. But instead of telling Zim I was just fidgeting with my ear, I blurted out the first thing that had come to my head. 

"The heck are you Zim?" I almost covered my mouth afterwards.

I could see Zim's jaw tighten and his eyes turn nervous, but he also managed to keep a straight face. "What do you think?" 

My face went pale. For the first time since I'd seen Zim, I had no clue. All my ideas and theories, out the window. 

"Well?" I snapped out of my head. I'd almost forgotten Zim was right there across from me. I shook my head. 

"Eh, it's too embarrassing to say." 

Zim made a small noise, then chuckled. "You are an odd one, Dib-Human." 

Angrily, I rolled my eyes and took a sip of my soda. Then I started poking at my salad. 

"Are you not hungry?" Zim asked. Why did he care? 

"No," I muttered, "Are you?" I didn't even care to realize Zim had no food in front of him when he laughed. 

"Silly Dib! Zim has no need for food!" 

I suddenly got an idea. I asked, "Because you're a robot?" Zim looked at me all confused. 

"No, Zim would never be a robot! No superhero either, in case you were wondering!" Well there went about three of my other theories. 

We sat in silence for a little longer until I noticed Zita getting up to leave. I then followed, but Zim just stayed put. 

"Zim, aren't you coming to class?" I asked, tossing my soda can in the recycling bin. Zim shook his head. I would've argued, but there was only a few minutes left until class started, so I shrugged and ran off. 

By the time I got to class, the teacher wasn't there yet. Perfect. I sat down at my table and waited, until the bell rang and the teacher walked in with small boxes. He passed them around to everyone, then walked up to the front and demonstrated what to do. He told us to put a drop of water on each of our papers we were given, then use a small needle to release a small bit of blood from our fingertips, and let it drip onto the papers with the water. That way we could figure out what our blood type was. Oh dear. 

I felt myself going into a hole now at the mention of needing to draw my own blood. I could feel my hands shaking; my throat was tightening up. I didn't notice anything that was going on around me until I felt an arm around my waist. Blinking myself into reality, I saw it was Zita who was pulling me up; apparently I caused a bit of alarm with my breakdown and was now heading to the nurse's office, Zita being my escort. 

A bit of a walk later, I asked Zita to help me down to the floor; I needed to sit down badly. 

"You gonna do ok Dib?" she asked. I nodded. She clicked her tongue a little. "Dib, your face went from normal to pale to green quicker than water running from a tap. Just let me know when you're ready to get up." 

"Dib?" a voice I knew all too well called from around the corner. Of course it had to be Zim.

"What do you want Zim?" I muttered. 

"I want to know why you're here instead of class with this girl," Zim said. Zita pursed her lips, looking somewhat offended Zim didn't know her name, but she didn't argue. 

"Dib needs to be at the nurse, Zim. We're just resting for a bit, then we'll get up and go," she explained. Zim's face went to shock, whether it was real or fake I'd never know. 

"If Dib must be at the nurse, then at the nurse he shall be!" he shouted. Zita shushed him, but he'd already picked me up bridal style. Now that was something I'd probably never say again. And despite Zita's protests, Zim was carrying me off to the nurse's. Though I could see her getting up and catching up with us.

"What happened in class? Was it the blood stuff?" Zim whispered. Without thinking, I responded, "We were... yes. Blood just makes me... really queasy." 

Zim made a small noise and shifted me in his arms. It was then that I noticed he was easily carrying my weight without breaking a sweat. It didn't even seem to matter to him I was 110 something pounds, he wasn't bothered. How strong was this guy? 

Once I saw Zita opening a door for us, I knew we were at the nurse's. 

"Oh dear, what happened?" a female voice asked. 

"This Dib-Child grew queasy and almost fainted in Biology," Zim explained. 

"We were blood typing," Zita added. 

"Ah, there's always someone," the nurse sighed, taking me away from Zim and setting me on the couch in the nurses office.

The nurse rubbed my head. "The nausea should pass soon, don't worry." I nodded, already feeling it fading. 

I saw her look at Zim and Zita. "You two can head back to class now." Zita nodded and headed out the door. She stood for a moment in the doorway, waiting for Zim, but when she saw Zim wouldn't budge, she shrugged her shoulders and left. 

"I'll go get an ice pack for your head," the nurse mumbled, setting off. Zim wandered over and chuckled. 

"Why is this so funny to you Zim, why is my pain funny?" I whispered. 

"Eh, Zim finds everyone's pain funny. It's not a big deal." 

I opened my mouth to retort something, but no words came out. Instead, I just continued to lay on the couch as the nurse came back with her ice pack and rested it on my head. 

"Here you go. Now see if you can sit up, we may have another one come in," she said. Keeping the pack still, I twisted my body and sat up straight. No dizziness, no nausea, I was ok. 

Just then, the nurse dashed out the door and poked her head back in. "I'm sorry honey, you and your friend will have to leave now, we have another one coming in." 

I did my best to hop off the couch without losing my balance, and Zim helped me out the door as another kid stumbled in the office. I could smell his blood dripping from his finger. 

"Ugh, his blood smells," I muttered, hoping Zim wouldn't hear. Boy, was I wrong. 

"You can smell blood?" Zim almost yelled. I groaned a little. 

"Yeah, it smells all rusty and salty and sticky," I said, my words slurring together a bit. Zim looked a mixture of confused and curious.

"Never mind," I mumbled. 

Zita then busted through the door, glancing from me to Zim. I could tell she wasn't the most pleased by what she saw in the nurse's office. 

"You good?" I asked her. She just nodded. We all stood in silence for a bit after, until Zita spoke up once more. 

"So, you going to the beach?"

I did my best to sound cheerful. "Yeah, totally." 

"We're meeting at my dad's house at 11, I can tell you the address at Gym if you want." Her eyes gestured to Zim, telling me he most surely wasn't invited. 

"Got it! See ya at Gym!" I gave a small chuckle in hopes to sound happy, but Zita seemed to look through me. She gave a small giggle of her own, then walked away looking somewhat dejected. Boy would Gym be fun for me. 

"Worried for Gym, Dib-Human?" Zim asked. 

"Yeah..." my voice faltered a little. Zim let out a huge groan, then shoved me into the nurse's office. "Sit down and look pathetic," he whispered. 

That wasn't too hard for me. I was still sort of pale from earlier and I could make my breathing shaky when needed. I saw Zim talking to the nurse a few seconds later. 

"Miss Nurse drone, the Dib child is still not feeling well, and he has Gym next. I think I should be taking him home. Do you think we could both be excused?" 

The nurse took a look at me, then back at Zim. "Oh, yes. I can take care of it." She looked at me once more. "I do hope you get better soon Dib!" 

Zim walked back over to me and helped me out of the office. "Don't expect me to help you like that again, Dib. And I assume you can walk fine too." 

"Yeah, I can walk. I'm not that pathetic, Zim." Nevertheless, I made sure Zim was still by me as we walked out of the building, just in case I needed him.

"So, are you still going to the beach on Saturday?" I saw his face change from questioning to blank. 

"Zim wasn't invited," he said. "There's also a problem I have with... beach-y stuff." 

Ah. 

We were now at the parking lot. As I took two steps toward my truck, I felt something tug me back by the jacket. 

"What the heck Zim?" I near shouted. 

"Zim does not want a filthy sick beast like yourself to be taking yourself home. You will come with Zim!" 

"Wait what? What about my truck?" 

"Tenn can take it to your house after school." Zim didn't even bother to look back as he kept dragging me by the jacket all the way to his Volvo. I had to keep moving my feet just to make sure I didn't fall over myself. 

"Zim! Let me go!" I protested. Zim ignored my cries. Once we reached the Volvo, Zim let me go as I slammed myself against the passenger seat door.

"Door's open. Now get in," Zim ordered. I rolled my eyes and opened the door, stepping in the car as Zim made his way to the driver's seat.

After Zim fiddled with the settings on the car, we set off. It was dead silent in the car, guess Zim didn't like a lot of music. I leaned back in the seat and tried to clear my head in spite of the lack of noise. It was all so relaxing to be honest, I didn't even we were going super fast. The stores whizzing by finally gave it away for me.

"So, Dib, what are your parents like?" Zim asked suddenly, giving an odd emphasis on 'parents', like he was choking on the word. I almost jumped hearing him ask, his voice breaking the silence. It took me a bit before I answered. 

"Well... I only really have my dad. My mom died a little after I was two. My dad... well he's alright. He's not a horrible parent. He took care of me and Gaz just fine when he was able to, the problem was he's just kinda, not really there all that much. He works for a big science lab company, so he's usually pretty busy, which I get, but sometimes it sucks, having no one but yourself and your sibling with you, there to look after yourselves for the next couple of hours." I could feel my throat tightening, but it didn't matter once I finished my tangent. There was silence afterwards. 

"How old are you Dib?" Zim finally asked. 

"16, a Junior obviously like you," I responded. "What's your age? You don't seem even 16." 

Zim seemed to blank. Either he forgot in the moment or he was hiding something, like he doesn't even have an age! But instead of pressing further, for fear of Zim crashing the car, I decided to switch the topic. 

"So, tell me about your family. Must be a better story than mine. You have two dads, right?" 

Zim seemed to calm down and go back to normal now. "Oh yes, I do, they go by Red and Purple." 

"Why are they named after colors? Or is that their last name?" I asked further. 

"Last name. Next question." 

"Ok... you were adopted, right?" 

"Yes, we all were."

"What happened to your guys' parents?" 

"We never really had parents. None of us did." 

"Oh. I'm so sorry Zim." 

"What are you sorry for? Red and Purple have always been my parents! They're my leaders practically!" 

"That's an odd way to put it..." I mumbled under my breath. Before Zim could wonder what I was thinking, I asked another question. "And your siblings? What do you think of them?" 

"Skoodge and Bob aren't my favorites, always complaining about their heights. Especially Bob, oh how he complains. Ida and Tenn are... nice I guess one would say. By the way, they'll probably not like waiting for me in the cold coming to get them after taking you home." 

"Oh, I guess I do have to get out." I just noticed we were almost there, and I didn't want to leave the car, I was probably getting close to figuring Zim out! "What about my truck?" 

"Like I said, I can have Tenn bring it to your base." 

"So... will I see you tomorrow?" 

"No. We'll be out of town." 

Once we arrived, I prepared myself to step out into the pouring rain. But before I left, Zim snatched me tight by the arm, tugging me backwards a little. 

"Yeah?" I asked. Zim stared at me, silent for a few seconds. After, he let go and pushed me out of the car, letting the rain instantly dampen my hair. 

"Nothing. Leave. Go." 

I nodded, confused, and went inside the house, rushing to be hit by the rain as least as possible.


	6. Chapter 6

I sat in my room, staring blankly at the book we were reading for English. I kept my eyes on the page, but my ears open for when my truck would arrive in the driveway. I peeked out of my curtain once; nothing but driveway and rain. I closed the curtain and turned the page. Then five seconds later, I opened my curtain again; the truck was there. Odd, I thought I would have heard, even over the rain.

Friday was pretty much what I expected; a bunch of stories about Bio and people fainting over the blood. Some in my class seemed to talk about me especially. Zita stayed quiet about the whole thing however, which was good for both of us when I think about it. Drew seemed to have some questions about lunch however.

"What did Zim want yesterday at lunch?" he asked.

"I dunno," I said, "He never really explained anything."

"I've never seen him sit with anyone but his siblings, and even then he doesn't enjoy them a ton!"

"It is odd. Something's definitely up with him and his family."

Worst part was, Zim wasn't there again when we entered the cafeteria for lunch that day. When I took my first look at the table, I saw Ida, Tenn, and Bob at the table, not talking, not eating. It was also the first time I noticed their backpacks. Tenn's and Bob's were pink, but Ida's was purple. Was she just the notable outlier of all of them? 

At my normal table, everyone was buzzing about the beach trip the next day. Sun was supposed to occur tomorrow, which meant somewhat warmer weather. I doubted it, but Drew and Zita kept telling me to remain positive about it.

That night, Gaz was indifferent about the beach trip I was going on. Thank goodness. And of course she knew the names of everyone going, as well as their chaperones. I wondered if she'd react at all to the fact Zim was going with me. Probably not.

The next morning, as I pulled my truck into the parking lot of a nearby strip mall, I noticed the cars of Zita's and Drew's. There was a whole group of people surrounding the front of Drew's car, endlessly chatting. There were a few other guys and girls there, a few I knew, a few I wish I didn't. Great. At least Zita looked happy to see me. 

"Dib! You made it!" she cheered, giving me a hug. "I told you it would be sunny today, didn't I?" 

"Hey, I was going to come anyway," I said, trying to subtly let Zita off me. 

"We're just waiting for a few more people unless you're bringing someone along too," Drew explained. Once Zita finally took the cue and ended her hug, I shook my head. Big lie, but I knew a few people in this group didn't like Zim. Maybe this was for the better. 

"Wanna ride in my car? It's that or Drew's minivan," Zita said. 

"Yours," I decided instantly. Zita smiled.

"You can take shotgun," she said. I saw Drew from behind Zita's shoulder looking downcast. Now I just felt bad for him.

Everything seemed to turn out fine though, once everyone else arrived. Every seat was needed, and once we were filled up, we set off.

It wasn't long to get to La Push, and we got to see some amazing scenery on the way, so it was all really cool. I managed to get a window seat, so I could fully see all of the nature rolling past. We even had the windows rolled down.

Gaz and I had gone to La Push a few times, and it was always pretty fun. We weren't kids anymore however, so Gaz mainly just sat down and played her GameSlave (honestly, when was she not?) and I just ventured in the tide pools near the forest. It wasn't the prettiest beach, but it had its charm. Dark grey ocean with grey rocky beaches, large, cliffs for islands. White trees lined the edges in large driftwood piles, separating the sea from the forest nearby. 

When we all piled out of our cars, Drew led us to a fire pit devoid of wood and covered in ashes from a previous guest (or guests). Only stones lined where the pit was.

Zita, another kid I think was named Macy, and I made it our duty to gather up driftwood along the edge of the forest for the fire. When we finished, we had a teepee shape within the stones of the pit. Zita then took out a match and attempted to strike it. 

"Ya ever see a driftwood fire before Dib?" she asked one she finally got it lit. I shook my head. 

"Well then, you'll love this." Zita tossed the match into the driftwood, catching it on fire. when the flames arose, it looked not like a normal fire. 

"The flames are blue?" I said. But I was in awe nonetheless. 

"The salt on the driftwood does that," Zita explained, just as amazed as I was. She lit another match and tossed where the fire hadn't caught, then sat down. I sat down next to her. 

After half an hour of talking, a couple of people wanted to go to the tide pools nearby and look for stuff. After the decision was made on who was going and not, those of us who were, Zita and myself included, set off. 

It wasn't that long to get there luckily, and when we arrived, I already felt a sense of nostalgia coming from gazing upon the tide pools. I was careful not to lean too far in and fall, but there were others that were being daredevils, leaning down into the pools, looking for stuff within the waters.

When I found a stable rock by the largest pool, I crouched down on it and stared at the marvelous ecosystem below me. It all looked so beautiful. Though I couldn't help but wonder what Zim was up to, and if he'd even be here at all.

Finally, a few of the kids wanted to eat, so we all headed back through the woods to the fire. A few of us tripped and fell a bit, but it was all in good times. 

When we returned, the group that stayed behind doubled. There was a large amount of other kids who'd come from a small, rural-esqe community. As Zita and I sat down, Drew had said our names as introduction to the rural kids, with one girl who had purple hair look up at me oddly. 

As the food was being passed around, the other group of kids was being introduced. I hadn't paid too much attention, so all I got was one girl was named Tri (pronounced Tree), and the girl with purple hair who looked at me funny was called Tak. 

As lunch started to end, the sky started becoming more and more cloudy. As people finished eating, they started to go separate ways in pairs and threes. Some went to skip rocks, Drew and some others went to a shop in the nearby village, and others went on a hike. I just sat down staring at the sky, dazing off, while Jennifer and other guy listened to a CD, with some of the rural kids huddled around the two, listening closely. After the person who sat next to me had left, Tak took notice and came over, sitting down in their place. She seemed to really love purple, it was on her clothing, her hair, her backpack, her earrings, heck, even her eyes were purple, black eye shadow and eyeliner making them pop out even more. 

"So... you're Dib?" she asked. 

"Yeah," I sighed. 

"I'm Tak, though you prolly already know that." 

I chuckled. At least she seemed nice enough. 

"Hey Dib," Jen called. "Isn't it odd how none of Zim's family decided to come today? I know they'd probably have fun." 

"Oh, them?" a deep voice said. It was the oldest of the rural kids. Though he seemed more like he'd be one of the kids' dads if anything, he sounded and looked much older than all of them. "They don't come here." 

The kid with Jen tried getting her attention, asking her opinion on a CD he was holding. But she wouldn't listen. 

We all stared at the deep-voiced person, looking off into the distance like some action hero. He said Zim and his family never came here, but from the tone of his voice, it sounded like they weren't allowed to. Odd. How come? 

Before any theories could start flowing through my brain, Tak asked me a question. 

"So, how's Washington been treating ya? Gone nuts yet?" 

"Eh, here and there. But I've managed to keep some cool." 

We sat in silence as I still mulled over the comment on Zim's family, then I decided to do something weird. 

"Hey Tak, wanna walk on the beach with me?" I wasn't much of a person to try and hit on people, but Tak seemed to be nice enough, and I kinda started to like her a lot. So why not try it? 

Tak gave me a dirty look, but she then shrugged and stood up, clearly ok with the idea nonetheless.

As we walked across the beach, the sky started getting darker, and the air colder. I tugged my jacket around my body a little bit. 

"So... how old are you? I'm 16," I said.

"Just turned 15," Tak replied. 

"Really? You seem at least a year or two older." 

"I get that a lot." 

"Who was the guy who said that Zim's family don't go here?" 

"Oh, that's Spork. He's 19." 

"What did he mean by what he said?" 

"Zim and his family, they aren't supposed to be here." So what I thought Spork said was right.

"How come?" I asked. 

Tak gave me a glare. "Because aside from their parents, Zim and his siblings are exiles. We all once came from the same place you know. But when we all came down here, we had to make separate ways. Those who were good at their jobs, and those who weren't. Survival of the fittest, you know?" 

The sound of stones clunking against each other startled me as Zita and another kid ran back to camp. 

"Hey Dib," Zita sounded out of breath. 

"This your girlfriend Dib?" Tak asked, a sneer on her face. My face flushed. 

"No, she is not," I whispered, nervous to hurt Zita's feelings. I decided to change the topic. 

"So Tak, you should come visit us in Forks sometime!"

"Eh, maybe. We'll see." Tak shrugged, but from the tone of her voice, she seemed indifferent about it actually. 

"Hey Dib, we'll probably have to leave soon. Looks like rain." Zita pointed up toward the sky. The clouds looked darker now. Definitely looked like rain. 

"Alright," I hopped up from my seat, "Let's go. Nice talking to ya Tak." 

Tak gave a small wave and smirked. 

I tugged up the collar of my jacket as we packed up and made our way to the car. We were right, it was just starting to rain as we all piled in Zita's car, a few drops making their way onto my head. I crawled in the back since I'd already had my chance at shotgun, and rested my head against the seat, trying hard to relax on the way home.


	7. Chapter 7

It wasn't hard to get past Gaz to my room. We usually kept to ourselves, didn't tend to get into the other's business. When I got to my room, I locked the door and pulled out a CD player. Inside was a cd from a band Gaz tended to enjoy. I did too, they had good beats and vocals and a bunch of different styles to their music. In a few minutes, I ended up singing to their songs. Then finally, I fell asleep.

I awoke in the woods at La Push. Tak was gripping my hand tightly, pulling me into what looked like the void.

"Tak? What's going on? Where are you taking me?" I pleaded. But my asks fell on deaf ears.

"Dib! Come on!" I heard Zita call from inside the void. But I didn't want to go there.

Then Tak let out a screech and let go of my hand, shoving me to the floor. Tak seemed to twitch and spasm a bit. She looked like she was in a really bad pain. But then she stood up. A thin tube now wrapped itself around half her head, and her eyes were a glossy purple. She also now sported black gloves, similar to the ones Zim and his siblings wore. Other than that, she seemed to stay the same.

"Dib! Run!" Zita shouted from the void. But my legs stayed frozen. Then I saw Zim step out from the void. His eyes were a full glossy pink, and his head sprouted two short antennae. His outfit stayed the same as well, his backpack also stayed the same cloth design as well, like Tak. He made a gesture for me to come closer to him. Tak stepped in front of me and turned around to face me.

"Trust me," she sighed.

I took a step closer.

Tak then launched herself between me and Zim, and the two of them started fighting.

I woke up screaming. My hand jerked to the CD player, which fell on the floor. I was sitting in bed, pants and shirt on, lights still on, at 5am. I groaned and flopped back on my bed. How much sleep did I even get? Then again, it didn't really matter. I was up now, and now I'd have to do something. I ran off to the bathroom to get some form of ready for the day. 

After I took a shower, I stepped out in a simple t-shirt and jeans, finding Gaz and her cruiser gone. Prolly to get pizza or something. So instead, I decided to open my computer. 

The internet here is the worst. It's way too outdated, so everything takes forever. Just getting everything ready took so long I managed to eat breakfast, use the bathroom, and fix my CD player before it even finished. 

When I did get back to my computer, it was covered in pop up ads. It took another 2 minutes to get them all off the screen. When I got to the search bar, I typed in one word. 

Aliens. 

Instantly, I got quite a few results. Most of them were conspiracy sites, but quite a few of them contained some real interesting stuff. Then I stumbled across a site that was run by a former NASA astronaut. That had to be something good, right? 

The site was filled with an A-Z list of all these different myths and theories on aliens. A few other bits on alien stuff and species, but that was really it. But then there was one paragraph on an alien species that caught my attention. 

"Irkens are a very territorial and competitive species of aliens. They bear green skin with different antennae, depending on the Irken's gender. Straight if male, curled if female. Their eyes tend to represent the color of their packs, or as they call them, PAKs, small, metal backpack like objects that contain their very life force." 

I ran through the list of attributes in my head- green skin, antennae, PAKs, eyes that match said PAKs (maybe clothing too now I think it), competitive and territorial. Seemed to fit Zim rather well. Tak too, but at the same time, it was probably just a hallucination. Then again, Zim couldn't have been a hallucination. But there was one other thing as well. Irkens, according to the site, couldn't be in rain on Earth, as the pollution in the rain burned them. They also couldn't eat meat, as it also contained things that burned their skin. If that was the case, why wasn't Zim's skin burning when it snowed? Snow was just cold water after all. 

Angered, I smacked my hands hard on my desk. It hurt badly. I felt so dumb, it was just like my old school all over again. I was looking into aliens, and no doubt if I shared it with anyone, I'd be mocked for it.

I need to leave the house and clear my head. But there wasn't anywhere I couldn't go without having to pack a day bag. I stepped outside anyway, pulling my jacket on, and walked away. I didn't even bother with my truck, going on foot would be better. Give me more time to think. 

The sky was overcast, but no rain as far as I knew. Almost like my mood.

I found a forest trail nearby and started walking down it. Good thing it was there, or I'd never be brave enough to be near the woods at all. I went down the path for as long as my legs willed me to go. The less upset I became, the slower my steps. I felt drops of water on my face from the drops on the trees above. 

After quite a while of walking, I sat down under a slightly more dry tree. I made an extra effort to make sure my jacket was between my pants and the tree roots, then leaned my head back. But my head couldn't stop swimming with, well, everything!

First off, I had to know if what I was thinking was correct. I mean, combined with what Tak told me, the dream I had, what I already observed regarding the slight changes and oddities in Zim's appearance, and also the NASA astronaut's website, it all seemed to be connected. I had to be right. 

Once again, I rattled off the list of oddities with Zim and his family. Slight changes in hair, the green skin, pink glow behind the boys' eyes, they all wore the same outfit every day, they never ate, moving at quick speeds, access to some sort of metal devices and technologies (how else could Zim have kept me down when the car accident happened if he never used his hands?), and now I thought of it, they all seemed to bear three fingers as well. Even Tenn and Ida. 

Part of me didn't want to be right, but, the more I thought about it, _aliens._

There really were other life forms out there, and they could be here, in Forks, going to high school with me. Think of all the discoveries I could make, show the world that aliens were really real! That Zim and his family were, aliens. I'd bet they weren't even family at all. 

And if I was right, what would I do? Telling someone my discovery was definitely out of the question. I would most likely try to keep a close eye on Zim and his so called "family", being very subtle about it of course. 

My head kept swimming until I made a decision. If/when I knew the truth, I could tell no one about it. Who would believe me? As I realized what I wanted to do, I made my way back home, to Gaz, food, and clean socks. 

It was noon by the time I got back inside. I headed to my room and started on my English homework which was due Wednesday. We just had to read a book and write an essay on it, no big deal really. By the time Gaz came home with lunch, I'd already finished my rough draft. 

And that night, no dreams occurred. I couldn't tell if it was a good or bad thing it happened. The next day, I saw it was bright and sunny outside. Rare for Washington State I'm sure. When I went down for breakfast, Gaz surprisingly had a bowl of oatmeal set out for me. Very odd of her, but I appreciated the gesture nonetheless. She was watching TV now, eyes locked on some news story that looked really cool. When I finished breakfast, I said a quick goodbye and left for the truck. 

I tugged a little on my jacket as I started the truck up, and headed off for school. I was one of the first ones to arrive actually, so I sat on one of the benches while working on a few math problems. After a minute of trying, I allowed myself to sketch a little in the margins of my math notes. When a few minutes passed of zoning out, I realized I drew at least three pairs of the same glossy eyes that Zim and Tak beared from my dream all those days ago. Quickly, I erased them out.

"Hey Dib!" I heard who I believed was Zita as she ran towards me. I lifted my head up to see. Yep, it was Zita.

I'd also noticed the school was filling up quickly with students now, as kids of many ages in t-shirts started filing in. 

"Hi Zita," I waved, noticing how bouncy her purple dyed hair was today. The only thing keeping it stable was her black headband she wore everyday. She looked so happy to see me, I couldn't help but flash a smile.

"What ya doing?" Zita sat down next to me and peered over my shoulder, at my now closed notebook. 

"Just working on my essay," I said, putting my stuff into my backpack. "Might have to work on it later too, it's pretty long I won't lie." 

"Oh, for English? That's due Friday right?" 

"Yeah, but it's due Thursday." 

"Oh." Zita looked somewhat dejected. "Guess I'll have to start working then eh? But I guess that means I can't ask you out for tonight."

A shock of energy just went through me. "What?" 

"I... I wanted to ask you out to dinner tonight honestly." Zita sent her eyes to the ground. She looked sad and perhaps a little scared. I felt bad for Zita. I wanted to tell her I wasn't interested honestly, but then I thought of something. 

"But what about Drew?" I asked. Zita looked up at me. 

"Drew?" she looked really confused. 

"Yeah, have you been blind the whole time?" She cocked her head to the side. Perfect chance for me to leave.

"Oh, it's started to get late, don't wanna be late for class." I quickly stood up and stuffed my everything into my bag. "Let's go." 

Zita followed me as we headed inside. She looked a little zoned out as we walked down the hall. I hoped whatever I put into her head would help the both of us in the long run.

When I got to Trigonometry, there was a whole group of girls giggling about going dress shopping after school for the dance. Drew then asked me if I wanted to go with him to pick out a formal outfit for the dance also. While I wasn't the biggest fan of shopping, or social events in school, or formal wear, it would be nice to get out of the house. So I told Drew maybe.

Drew was very quiet like me on the way to both Spanish and lunch, unlike almost all the girls, including Zita, who were nothing but balls of excitement for the event. The whole time, my stomach was in knots. I needed to see at least Zim or someone else from his family at their table today, to try and make some sort of connection with my discoveries. 

As we entered the cafeteria, my heart pounded. Would Zim be waiting for me to sit with him? Peering at his siblings' table, no one was there. They weren't anywhere else in the cafeteria either. I should've been relieved, but I wasn't.

When we got to our table, I sat down across from Drew, who had pulled out a chair all gentleman-like for Zita to sit in. I noticed a slight blush across her cheeks as he did so. 

Throughout lunch, people were asking questions about various types of homework, and a few on the Trig homework. Drew then asked me a second time about going shopping for formal wear for the dance, to which I agreed, I didn't care anymore. Afterwards, I didn't bother trying to listen to everyone else as I was wrapped up in my own sadness. And the feeling only amplified tenfold when I walked into Bio and didn't see Zim there either. 

Gym was just as boring also, we had an assembly on one hand, which meant no changing and no physical activity, but it was boring all the same. 

I was so happy to leave school when the day finished. Drew then called me to say the shopping plan was cancelled, as he and Zita were going out to dinner that night. So the shopping would be delayed for tomorrow. I was glad to see he was catching onto what I was saying. 

Gaz and I had salad for dinner that night, so with nothing else to really do besides finish up some homework, I decided to check my emails on my laptop. Nothing. Not even from dad, who hadn't responded since my last email to him a while back. At least he wasn't totally cutting himself from me. Feeling bored, I decided to write to him again. 

_"Hey dad, it's been good in Forks. Surprisingly, it's been sunny outside and I even got to go to a beach with some friends. So I've been having quite a bit of fun. Hope to hear from you soon. -Dib"_

I decided to kill some time with some free reading, there was this one book I was really getting into. So I walked outside with a small throw blanket onto our tiny yard, laid down, and picked up where I left off. 

Just reading the book outdoors made me realize that small love I had for nature. The trees casting their deep, cool shadows over the world, the grass dusted with dew drops. And the book itself was good too, if not making me a little sleepy. Its words seemed to lull me away, drifting off... off... off...

Next thing I heard was Gaz's cruiser pulling into the driveway. I jerked up, startled by the noise. How long was I out? 

"Gaz? You in there?" I opened the door to find Gas on the couch, turning on the TV. "Dinner's gonna be a bit, sorry." She grunted in response. 

Gaz and I watched a horror movie after dinner. Specifically, The Exorcist. I loved it because of the paranormal and supernatural elements, and Gaz loved it because of the creepy factor and the bits of violence. Something for everyone really. 

"You prolly won't care, but I was gonna go to the mall after school tomorrow to help Drew find a good outfit for the dance," I said after a while. Gaz shrugged. 

"Just don't get yourself killed alright? And you're not going to the dance anyway, so you're fine with me," she said. And it was that moment that I started to appreciate my sister a little more. 

The next day, I planned my arrival to school just so I could scope out Zim's family's Volvo in the parking lot, sadly to no avail. Then throughout the day, I grew even more melancholy when I saw both the lunch table and the Bio seat empty. Unsure why I was sad though. Wouldn't it be a good thing to see the possible alien and his possible alien family away from school grounds? Not causing any really bad harm? But at the same time, what if they were planning something? Something bad?

Even when Drew and I arrived at the mall, I regularly turned my head back, with a slight idea that Zim would be there behind me. But alas, he wasn't. Never was, most likely never will be. I even started considering doing some shopping for myself. So I did, but I only got a pair or two of jeans and two shirts. Not a whole lot, but enough to make people think I had a sense of fashion.

When we returned to my house, I waved Drew a goodbye and watched as he started his car and went off into the night.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alright so bit of a thing! it's at this point I feel the writing of chapters (for me at least) is starting to get a little wonky. it's nothing horrible, it's just the way the book itself is written and the differences between it and this means there's stuff I feel I can't/shouldn't include, and if I do, it'll be kinda ooc for these characters. but I am still going to try hard for this, and this isn't a serious fic after all, so all I'll say for now is the current total for chapters may go down/up a bit depending on how stuff goes. that whole thing aside, enjoy this chapter!!!

That night, I decided to call Zita. We talked for quite a bit about our plans and the dance and stuff like that. She was so bubbly and happy as she told me how well the date with her and Drew went. She was even hoping that they'd get to first base eventually. I chuckled a little, I was glad both of them were happy. 

"That has me thinking now, did you ever get in a relationship at any point Dib? Girl or boyfriend?" Zita asked. I felt my legs go numb for a second.

"Eh, not really," I said, hoping my nervous trembles wouldn't travel through the phone. "I've never really been in a relationship with anyone. I was never asked so it never happened."

"Really? Not even been thinking about getting into one here?"

"Nah, not really interested at the moment." 

"Oh, I get it. But if it wold make you feel any better, tons of people I know really like you, and I'm sure at least one of them would want to ask you out!" Zita exclaimed. I swore I could hear her add "especially Jen" at the end, so I decided to calmly question further.

"Wait what did you say?" I practically snapped instead.

Zita sighed. "Jen said she wanted to take you to prom."

"What?" I could almost see Zita recoiling from the phone from how loud my voice got. Then after a minute, I took a deep breath and spoke again.

"Do you think if I ran Jen over with my truck she'd stop apologizing to me? Cause I feel like that'd be the only thing that could stop this."

I got no response from Zita except for a few small noises. Then I remembered something I wanted to ask, hoping it would alleviate the sudden tension.

"Hey Zita? I've been meaning to ask you something."

"Oh? Go ahead," she chuckled.

"Is it normal for... Zim and his family... to be out of school for... so long?" I paused in between fragments, hoping it didn't show how nervous I was.

"Oh," was all Zita said for a minute. I knew she was probably thinking I was going to ask her something else, and now she was somewhat disappointed. I gave her the time she needed before she spoke again.

"Well, yeah, pretty much. Zim and his siblings apparently have some sort of illness that pops up a lot, and since Mr. Red's a doctor, he tends to them from home."

"Everyone? Ida, Skoodge, all of them?"

"Yeah. It's the weirdest thing isn't it? But they tend to come back to school after a day or two, and the illness isn't contagious, so everyone is used to it."

This was definitely getting more suspicious. Zim and all his siblings just happened to have an illness that means they all are away from school at the exact same time? And it's not contagious? Most likely a sham so they can do alien stuff without being detected.

When we ended our call, I thought about taking a long walk. So I put my boots and jacket on, and headed out with a flashlight in case it got too dark outdoors.

As I wandered down a path, I heard a voice calling my name. It sounded soft and feminine, not like anyone I knew. After hearing it a few times, it was all that had taken up space in my head, making me almost like in a trance. It eventually got louder as I followed it, leading me to the edge of a cliff. It got louder down below, and without thinking, I walked right off the edge. Not a good move. And the worst part? I was too focused on the noise to even scream.

I then felt a small surge of pain travel through my body as I realized I never hit the ground. Instead, I fell into a pair of arms. That pair belonging to who else but Zim. Well this was a nice surprise.

"Zim? What the actual hell?" I screamed. He never answered however, and just ran away. I looked back toward where I fell, over the ocean and rocks where the soft voice was. Was it trying to help me, or not? By the way Zim was acting, I'd say the voice was more foe than friend, but I had no time to think of it. When he finally stopped running, he set me down on the grass not very gently, and sat himself down on a rock. Now was probably a good time to speak.

"Zim, what happened back there?" I asked. His eyes shot darts at me, but he didn't look mad.

"You were in an odd trance, I take it was from a soft lady voice?" I nodded. Zim growled and shook his fists at the sky.

"That was a hanker spirit. They try to get humans to kill themselves by jumping off ledges and the like," he explained.

"Oh," I muttered. In all my paranormal studies, I'd never heard of such a thing like that. But then again, how did Zim know that? When I asked him that very question, he stared at the ground for a few seconds before looking at me and answering.

"I've tended to be able to hear... certain things in peoples' heads. The voice that had filled up your ginormous head was a voice that I'd learned to remember via Red and Purple. Once close enough, I saw you walked off the cliff and knew it was that. So now you know."

Out of all the things I could've said to react, I said, "My head's not ginormous! It's barely larger than yours!"

Zim ignored my words and we went back to silence for a few minutes. I then broke the silence with something I wasn't sure if it would be harmless or kill me instantly.

"I may know what you are now."

Zim whipped his head at me, clearly ready to strike or pounce or whatever.

"YOU KNOW NOTHING!" he shouted.

"Oh really?" I started. If I kept talking, maybe Zim would shut up longer. "I ran into a new friend, Tak, at the beach on Saturday. She and the oldest of her group talked about you. Well, more like your family."

Zim seemed to cringe a little when I mentioned Tak's name. But I continued nonetheless.

"The oldest guy, I think he was Spork, mentioned how you and your family weren't allowed to be at La Push. And Tak mentioned how you guys were exiles. So then I decided to conduct my own research!"

"And what did you find?" Zim asked somewhat mockingly.

"Eh, bits and bobs," I muttered. "I decided it didn't matter in the end however. But some bits did intrigue me. I'm sure you wouldn't mind if I ask you a few things?"

He froze for a moment, but then nodded, allowing me to proceed.

"What's your deal with water? How were you able to be out in the snow?"

"Snow and water are two different things, easy!"

I almost laughed, shaking my head. Time to move on.

"How old are you?"

"16, another easy one!"

"And how long have you been 16?"

Zim froze. Now I got him. It took a few seconds before he answered, "a bit."

"How do you sleep? Do you sleep?"

Zim cackled. "Puny Dib-Child! Zim has no time for slumber!" Well that answered that.

One more question now. "And your... diet?" Zim looked at me confused.

"Eh? What? What about it?"

"Well... you don't eat. Not you, or Bob, or Tenn, or anyone of your family it seems."

"Oh, that. We don't need to eat, we're like... uh... camels! Yes!" I mean, it was an answer. And I guess it did count as an explanation. So I went along with it.

Then I looked at the night sky for the first time, realizing I needed to be home fast. Zim must've noticed my face, cause he picked me up again and threw me. Man he had quite an arm. When I say he threw me, I mean he threw me all the way to the driveway of my house. And somehow I didn't even get hurt. Except for my bottom a little.

Mechanically, I reached for the house key and let myself in. Gaz was there, watching some TV show.

"You're home early," she muttered. "How was it?"

An "eh" escaped my lips. "Stuff was found at least."

"You sound tired."

"I walked home."

Gaz said nothing else, resuming watching TV. I stumbled into the kitchen and sat down in a chair by the stove. I felt dizzy after being punted miles to home. Maybe I was gonna go into shock. Who knew?

The phone suddenly rang, making me fall off the chair. Hastily, I grabbed the phone and pulled it to my ear.

"Hi?"

"Hey Dib?"

"Zita! What's up?"

"Eh, just bored and wanted to talk. You alright? You sound a little squeamish. Or at the very least, not all that well."

"No, I'm alright. Promise."

"You sure? I can hang up now if this is a bad time to be calling."

"Seriously, it's fine. I'm fine."

"Can you at least tell me a little of what happened then?"

My breath hitched for a moment. "Tomorrow in Trig, definitely."

A pause. "Oh, sure. See ya tomorrow then!"

I walked up to my room, my mind feeling more and more heavy. Slowly, I got ready for bed, though unable to relax myself in the shower, still cold from the night against the hot water on my skin.

When my nightly routine was complete, I set my glasses on my nightstand and drifted off to sleep. Or, at least I tried to sleep. My brain was too full with the many thoughts from previous days. But I was definitely sure about three things now. 

One, Zim was really an alien. Two, he had this odd feeling of... attentiveness, I guess, toward me, but for what reason I was still unsure. And third, oh god I'm going to hate these words coming from my face, I felt indescribably attracted towards him. I'm seriously going to have to ask Gaz to run me over with her cruiser tomorrow.


End file.
